


we're the best friends (what can i say?)

by babyongie



Category: NCT (Band)
Genre: Aged-Up Character(s), Alternate Universe - Non-Famous, Attempt at Humor, Boys In Love, Boys Kissing, Chaos Ensues, Crack, Cute Kids, Domestic Fluff, Friends to Enemies, Husbands, Implied/Referenced Homophobia, Jealousy, M/M, Married Couple, Meddling Kids, Mentioned NCT 127 Ensemble, Mentioned WayV Ensemble, Misunderstandings, Multi, Polyamory, They Have Kids, cos im not funny :((, the kids go through a bit because their parents aren't nOrMaL, their kids become friends
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-05-19
Updated: 2020-06-07
Packaged: 2021-03-02 23:07:07
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 6,093
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24264817
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/babyongie/pseuds/babyongie
Summary: When a 9-year-old boy befriends a group of kids, he doesn't realise their fathers are best friends. Or, at least, used to be best friends because now, to say they hated each other was an understatement.(or, a dreamies au where they flourish in their romantic lives but their friendship with each other falls apart and, really, they shouldn't be depending on their kids to just talk it out, but that's exactly what they do.)
Relationships: Huang Ren Jun/Lee Jeno, Huang Ren Jun/Lee Jeno/Na Jaemin, Huang Ren Jun/Na Jaemin, Lee Donghyuck | Haechan/Mark Lee, Lee Jeno/Na Jaemin, Park Jisung/Zhong Chen Le
Kudos: 43





	1. ice cream

**Author's Note:**

> hey there !!!! welcome to another one of my word vomits that just ..... happen ..... idek. this is a random mess my brain has produced and i kind of got rlly into it so :D ALSO this another episode of me not knowing how to write in a single tense.... pls i suck so badly at keeping the same tense throughout my stories, if any of yall have any tips on this PLEASE HELP A GIRL OUT
> 
> disclaimer !!! this is rlly light-hearted ,,, i just wanted to portray something short and sweet hehe BUT (!!!!) there are references to homophobia >:( 
> 
> i swear this was supposed to be a one-shot but then i chaptered it ....... why? who knows ,,, not me :// it's not too many chapters but it will have slow updates, i'm sorry :(( hope you guys enjoy yeeee !! <33

_**!!**_ **tw:** _mentions of homophobia and excessive use of korean honourifics ..... :/ **!!**_

* * *

Minsoo repositions his backpack on his shoulders as he walks through the school gates. It had been another long, tedious day full of listening to a ranting teacher, writing down notes and trying his best to ignore his bullies. He let out a huff of air, telling himself he only had to survive one more year before he could move onto middle school.

As the nine-year-old boy makes his way down the familiar path, he stops in front of _'Qian's Ice-Creamery_ and it was with eagerness he unzips his backpack and digs out the money crumpled up at the bottom. He looks at it a little guiltily, he had asked for it this morning saying it was required to pay for a school club, even though in reality it was just for some sweet, sweet ice-cream.

Technically though, it wasn't Minsoo's fault. His dads were the ones that sent him to a school right near an ice-creamery and they were also the ones who said he couldn't have ice-cream when he had asked _really_ nicely the other day. Anyway, it had been ages since he had anything sweet.

The boy was about to enter when he realised there was a huddle of kids – all of them wearing the same uniform as him even though he didn't really recognise any of them – crowding in front of the door. Cocking his head slightly, he shoved the notes into his pocket and walked closer to see what all the commotion was.

"You said we'd have enough money!" A girl with a high-pitched voice said, unhappily. She stomped her foot once then twice, her hellishly mean glare making Minsoo shiver in fear and feel pity for whoever was on the receiving end.

The boy who was facing her wrath, however, didn't seem to care as he simply stuck his tongue out, childishly. "I said _maybe_ ," he countered back with equally as much attitude, "I wasn't certain so stop looking at me like I killed you cat."

Minsoo seemed to be the oldest and so he decided to be the bigger person in the situation. He tapped on the girl's shoulder gently. "What's wrong here?"

The girl almost whacked him in the face with her ponytail as she turned around. Up close, Minsoo could see the pink hair clips on her hair and the large pink bow – it reminded him of JoJo Siwa, if he was being completely honest – holding her ponytail up. "Who are you?" She asked, her voice still as high as before.

She was a bit of a brat, Minsoo thought to himself in distaste as he watched her stick her nose up in the air.

"You're all really loud, what's the matter?"

Minsoo hadn't seen him in the beginning but there was a small boy hiding behind a pair of legs belonging to a much more relaxed looking girl. The boy leaned across to tug at JoJo Siwa girl's black, uniform skirt insistently. "Noona! Stop talking to strangers!" The boy puffed out his cheeks in indignance.

The girl, however, simply glared at the smaller boy. "We're all strangers here but all I want is some ice-cream!" she shrieked the last part, right near Minsoo's ear and he winced, slightly annoyed.

"Look, are we going to be able to get ice-cream or not, my appa's going to kill me if I don't bring Jiwoo back home before dark." A boy cut between the quarrel, his hand clutching onto a younger girl who seemed to be simply confused, but intrigued at everything that was happening, her head moving from side to side as she watched everyone who was talking.

_Me too, little girl_ _,_ Minsoo thought to himself.

Minsoo was getting a headache from all this fighting. They hadn't answered his question but he was guessing they thought they had money for ice-cream but ended up not having it. The boy could feel the notes in his pockets and he knew he had more than enough money for one ice-cream. Maybe, just maybe he was in a nice enough mood to share among – his eyes quickly flitted across the group and counted the heads – five other kids.

"Ok, you know what?" Minsoo butted in, taking the bundle of notes and waved it in his hands, "I can buy you all ice-creams, just shush, you’re making a scene."

"Baba says not to eat food from strangers," It was the girl who was watching everything like it was some kind of tennis game and Minsoo wanted to groan and just buy himself some ice-cream, the group was starting to get on his nerves to be honest.

"Shut up Jiwoo," The boy holding her hand snapped, flicking her forehead, "If you don't want it, don't eat it."

"Oppa!" the girl whined, scrunching her face up. She let go of the boy's hand and rubbed her forehead, wearing a pitiful expression. "I'm going to tell baba and he's going to be so mad at you."

"Yeah? Well then I'll tell appa you're the one who broke his headphones."

Minsoo rolled his eyes at the fighting that had erupted, yet once again. So, he simply pushed through the group and opened the door, the bell ringing as he entered. He smiled, feeling a little superior when the group suddenly quietened down and instantly followed him inside. In less than a second, the _don't talk to strangers_ _boy_ and _don't take food from strangers_ girl had pushed their faces against the display box, looking wide eyed at the flavours displayed colourfully.

The noise had caused a young man to walked out from the back of the store, making his way to the counter. He had a naturally bright smile on his face, showcasing all of his teeth as he greeted the customers. "Well, hello everyone! What would you all like today?" The man peered over the counter as he spoke when suddenly, as he gazed at the group, his expression faltered.

Minsoo was definitely confused at the sudden change he had picked up on the male's face but he didn't have time to ponder on it for long as the rest of the kids started shouting out their orders. The boy flinched, he was almost certain that the number of scoops and extra toppings everyone was ordering cost way more than the amount he had and his stomach dropped. He hesitantly ordered his own ice-cream before giving the strange man – who seemed to be simply staring at them in a mixture of awe and amusement – the money and to his pleasant surprise, the man didn't say anything about needing more.

It was a chorus of ‘ _thank you’_ s as the group left. In a silent agreement, they crossed the road and made their way to the playground across the street.

"Well," JoJo Siwa girl – Minsoo still didn’t know her name – said, her voice much quiet and gentler than before. "Thank you." She paused before offering a bright smile at Minsoo. "I'm Yeeun, nice to meet you."

"I'm Minsoo."

The girl next to Yeeun spoke up as Yeeun leaned in and took a spoonful of ice-cream from the girl's cup. It was only then Minsoo realised, astonishingly, that the two girls looked the same. "I'm Yewon, we're twins if you haven't realised already. This is our little brother, Yeonjun." Yewon flashed a bright smile, whilst Yeonjun poked his head through Yeeun's legs, his interest switching from his ice-cream cone to Minsoo.

He attempted to wipe ice-cream of his face using his hand but considering his hand was also coated in ice-cream it didn’t help much. Yeonjun looked up at Minsoo with wide eyes. "I'm three old." He stated proudly, holding up four sticky fingers.

Minsoo cracked a smile, watching as Yeeun cooed at her younger brother. She put down one of his fingers as Minsoo replied. "Hi, little guy, I'm nine years old."

Yewon shared a glance with Yeeun in surprise, "Oh! You're only one year older than us. Hold on… I think I've seen you around school. Mr Lim’s class, right?"

Minsoo nodded, opening his mouth to reply when a girl cut in between them. "I'm Jiwoo! And I'm five years old." Jiwoo paused and then burst into a sudden fit of giggles, looking up at the boy next to her cheekily. "And this is my brother Jihoon oppa and he's _one_ _hundred_ years old."

Jihoon let out a deep sigh, closing his eyes in annoyance. He flicked the younger girl on the head once again not caring at the way Jiwoo jutted her lower lip in a pout. "Shut up, you're actually so annoying," He looked up at Minsoo, his expression weary. "Actually, I'm seven."

Minsoo couldn't help but giggle lightly at the bickering. It wasn't as annoying as before for some reason, more endearing than anything actually. "So, all of you have siblings?" When they all nodded, Jiwoo passing a squinted glare up to her brother as she did so, Minsoo let out a sigh. "Oh, I'm an only child. It's just my dad and appa and me." But honestly, he was happy with that; a small but happy family.

Yewon cocked her head at what Minsoo had just said. She leaned in, confusion swirling in her dark eyes. "Appa _and_ dad? You – you have two dads?"

There was suddenly no trace of the bright smile Minsoo had just mere seconds ago. Instead, his face was twisted into a frown, his head held low. Minsoo had liked the group honestly, even the younger ones. He had hoped that maybe, _just maybe_ _,_ they could've been friends but of course. _Of course_ , Minsoo had to run his mouth a reveal that his family consisted of two male parental figures instead of one.

He had to kept reminding himself that no matter how amazing his two dads were, they weren't normal family. Now, with the news in the air he was just bracing himself for the confused noises followed by the fake gags and unfiltered attacks towards him. That's what always happened.

"Minsoo oppa!" It was Jiwoo, breaking the sudden silence that had blanketed the group. "Me too! I have two dads as well, papa and baba. We're twinsies!"

Jihoon looked down at his sister, his expression softening into a somewhat sweet gaze, shockingly different from the previous times. When he looked up at Minsoo his smile widened, a joyful glimmer shining in his eyes. "We've never met anyone else like us."

A giggle broke the silence that had followed Jihoon's statement. It was Yewon, nudging her sister, mirroring the mischievous smile on Yeeun's face. "Well then, have you met someone with three dads?"

" _Huh_?" Minsoo quirked up, his eyes widening in astonishment. "You have three?"

"Yeah," Yeeun smiled, she was licking off the cream on an Oreo she had topped to her ice-cream, and shrugged. "People used to make fun of us for it but it just means we get more love than normal."

"People are also stupid so we just don’t listen to them," Yewon added.

Minsoo nodded, wholeheartedly agreeing with Yewon's statement. Yeonjun, who was still attached to Yewon's legs came out from behind them, one hand clutching his ice-cream cone and the other pointing at Jiwoo. "I have baba too."

The older girl seemed to have misunderstood because her neutral expression flashed suddenly into a fierce scowl. "No, baba's _mine_."

Yeonjun shook his head determinedly, his lower lip trembling suddenly as he turned to Yewon and poked at her leg incessantly. "Noona, tell her I have baba too." his finger was still pointed at the girl but this time in an accusing manner.

"Is your baba Chinese?" Yeeun asked, reaching down to lift Yeonjun into her arms. The boy snuggled into her neck and Yeeun couldn't help but crinkle her face up when she realised her little brother's face had been smeared with his chocolate ice-cream which was now rubbing onto her school shirt.

It was Yewon who answered after Jiwoo made a positive sound as an answer. "Jiwoo, we call one of our dads _baba_ too because he's Chinese as well."

Yeonjun nodded frantically, lifting his face from Yeeun's neck. "Yeah, yeah! Appa, papa and baba. _Baba_." he counted on his fingers, tapping at the third finger twice.

Jiwoo _ahh_ -ed in understanding and Yeonjun wriggled in Yeeun's arms and when the girl set him down once again and it was amusing to watch Jiwoo and Yeonjun walk up to each other shyly. Jiwoo leaned in to take a hold of Yeonjun's free hand and pulled him, pointing to the slide a little further from where the group was.

"Have fun with your new friend, Woo," Jihoon flailed both hands in the air, laughing.

Yeeun nodded absentmindedly, she was too focused on trying to rub the brown smudges her brother had left on her collar. "Won, _look_ , what am I going to do?" She whined, showing the stain to her sister.

Yewon chuckled, opening her blazer slightly to show the bright orange smudges on her own shirt. "Paint, baba told me it was going to stay in shirt _forever_." A pout. "Just hide it, it'll be fine if you wear your jumper." Yeeun let out a defeated sigh and nodded.

Minsoo had realised all of them – except Yeonjun, who probably went to kinder – went to the same school. It was surprising he hadn't seen or heard about any of them considering their parental situations were similar, although he had heard whispers of a student with three dads but at that time, he had thought it was just another fake rumour about him.

"So," Minsoo started watching the two youngest go down the slide. Yeonjun was the only who still had his ice-cream in his hand, it was a little amusing to say the least, watching the small boy try to climb up the ladder with just one hand. "Do you have anything we can do?"

Jihoon perked up, slipping off his backpack and unzipping it to take out a basketball. He pointed over at the cement area, jogging over. "Let's play!" He said excitedly. Minsoo ran after him, Yewon tailing closely.

Yeeun looked at the ball with distaste. "I'll just stay here and watch them." She thrust a thumb over to Yeonjun and Jiwoo then sat down on a park bench. She had her water bottle in her hand trying to rinse the chocolate away but it just seemed to smudge even more.

The sun was setting by the time the time Yeeun called out to Yewon. “We need to go or baba will go crazy," She yelled out. Yewon nodded in agreement, trying to push her sweaty bangs out of her face.

The two boys followed Yewon, Minsoo passing the ball to Jihoon. "You know what, we would meet up here after school sometimes." Minsoo suggested happily. "Or maybe even during school." The group all nodded in what seemed to be complete synchronisation. They all had fun, especially since they were people who didn't have many friends in general.

And that day the kids all went home with ice-cream stains on their face and their hearts swollen with happiness from the new friends they had made.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> a lil intro to the kids !!!! i hope you can tell who's child is who's lolol but if anyone needs any clearing up just let me know and i'll try to explain it a little better,,,,,, hahaha. also ice-cream guy seems interested in the kids, wonder what that's about ooooh !!! hi that was me attempting to hype my story up im sorry ,,,,, insert sad cowboy emoji
> 
> anyway thank you for reading !!! stay safe and healthy and hydrated !! <33 lots of love, cel !!!


	2. love

The twins and Yeonjun would have managed to sneak inside the house in complete silence, without alerting any of their dads of their presence if it wasn't for Yeeun tripping over one of Yeonjun's toy trains. The dramatic shriek that escaped her lips was enough for her papa to come running down the stairs into the living room.

"Baby?" He called out and seeing the pout on the small girl's face and her body sprawled on the ground was enough for him to quickly scramble towards her and embrace her tightly. "Yeonnie, how many times have I told you to put away your toys?"

But then Yeonjun pouted and his lower lip quivered, not used to being scolded at, and the poor father simply couldn't get mad and instead opened his embrace for Yeonjun to join in on the hug. Yewon smiled at her papa squeezing into the hug, not wanting to miss out.

Her papa gave the best _est_ hugs in the entire universe, no doubt.

It was all sweet and happy until a loud clearing of a throat was heard, a very familiar sound.

"Well, _well_ ," It was baba, leaning against the door frame to their kitchen holding in his hands a wooden spoon, coated with what seemed to be pasta sauce. Great, Yeeun _hated_ pasta. "Nice of you three to finally come home–" He paused, making a show of turning to look at the clock, "– _three_ hours after school finished. Where on _earth_ have you been?"

"Ba," Yeonjun wriggled out of his papa's arms as he the older male got up and stood behind his two girls. Even he was a little scared of his husband, no matter how tiny or cute he was but the young boy however wasn’t scared, knowing very well his baba would _never_ pick on him, and wrapped his arms around his baba's legs. "Yeonjunnie had lots of fun today!"

"Yeonjun? Is that ice-cream on your face?" He bent down to pick up the boy, resting Yeonjun on his hip. He rubbed at the corner of the younger boy's mouth, Yeonjun crinkling his face up as he did so. "Did you three go eat ice-cream? _Jaemin!_ " Yewon watched amusedly as her baba directed his whine towards her papa.

Yeonjun nodded, excitedly. "Yeah, yeah! This nice boy buyed us all ice-cream."

This time Jaemin was the one who was shocked, a confused sound – a habit he had gotten from their other husband – escaping his lips. "Nice boy? A boy? Girls, what's this about a boy?"

"Papa," Yeeun rolled her eyes. It was always papa and appa who made a big fuss about being around boys, as if she would get too close to one anyway. They were all gross and icky and had cooties. "He's just a friend from school."

"Friend? Renjun, do you hear this?" Renjun simply sighed exasperatedly, he was more concerned that their kids had taken money from someone else for ice-cream.

Right at that moment, the door opened revealing the three's appa. The male couldn't even get in a greeting or attempt to pull off his blazer before Jaemin started yelling. "Jeno! Your girls were out with a boy today, _a boy_!"

Renjun knew exactly where this would go, Jeno and Jaemin would spend a dramatically long time questioning the poor twins on this mystery boy. He sighed, shaking his head. "Yeonjun," Renjun whispered to the boy in his arms, "You can't just randomly make your friends buy you food like that, ok? And don't play with friends after school randomly either. Tell baba or papa or appa first, we’ll always let you play but we need to know where you are." He gently chastised.

Yeonjun nodded earnestly, holding out a pinkie to seal his promise, and Renjun cooed. It was reflex to just gush over everything his youngest did at this point. Renjun tuned out the _'what colour is his hair, huh?'_ from Jeno and went back to finishing off dinner. Yeonjun had made himself comfy on his hip, head resting on Renjun's shoulder and eyes drooping.

A little later he heard the sound of two pairs of feet pattering up the stairs and Yeonjun perked up, all sleepiness vanishing, squirming in Renjun's hold and so the male gently put him down. With that he dashed away and followed his sisters, flashing a smile at his appa and papa who were entering the kitchen.

"Done interrogating them?" Renjun asked, his voice unimpressed. Jaemin pouted and shrugged while Jeno trailed off into a serious explanation on why boys were evil and needed to be kept away from his baby girls.

Renjun simply let out a sigh, turning back to give the pasta final stir then spinning around to lean into Jeno. Looping his arms around the taller male's neck, Renjun shuts Jeno up with a gentle kiss to his lips.

"Injunnie, what about me? You never give _me_ kisses when _I_ come back from work." Jaemin was whining so childishly Renjun really couldn't fathom that the man was a father of three children.

Renjun leaned in towards Jaemin, still comfortable in Jeno's arms, and gave into Jaemin's loud whinging. "Not even Yeonjun's this needy," Renjun mumbled, their lips still connected. He heard Jeno laugh, feeling the younger male nuzzle into his neck, a pair of lips on his shoulder.

"We've been together for years now baby, aren't you used his antics?"

Jeno's question caused the male of subject to pull away. Then, with Jaemin's entire being he huffed and puffed and whined about his husbands not loving him.

It was quite endearing if Renjun said so himself. Or maybe, Renjun was just way too deep in love.

After the family had dinner, chatting about their easily, Renjun had retired into his study to finish of some extra work he had pending. It was while he was reading through an article on a newly opened art gallery in Seoul that Yewon walked in, holding a math textbook and notebook, looking very deflated. He let out a sigh internally, knowing very well school was only going to get harder as the years went by.

"Ba, I'm _so_ confused." Yewon whined, and Renjun peered at the division problems on her textbook and he groaned along with Yewon.

"Oh sweetie," He sighed, lifting Yeeun up and placing her on his lap. "Maths is stupid." He stated, with his whole chest.

Yewon giggled, placing a finger up to her lips. "Shh, don't let papa and appa hear you!" it was true, although Renjun couldn't fathom it, both his husbands had careers based on numbers and maths in general. Just thinking about it made Renjun sick.

Like, _gross._

But Renjun wasn't completely a lost cause with maths and was able to guide his third grader through division, the two of them working side by side on their own things. It was only when Yewon had started yawning that Renjun realised it was already past her bedtime.

"Yewon, let's go to bed." Renjun whispered, switching off his iMac. The girl nodded, sighing in relief, slamming the textbooks close with excitement. She left the books in her baba's study room and simply turned and raised her arms up. Renjun chuckled, leaning down to carry Yewon. "You're getting too big for me to carry now," Renjun exclaimed and he grunted dramatically.

"Baba, you're just getting old!" She retaliated and Renjun couldn't help but smile proudly. He had taught her well.

After Renjun tucked all three of the kids into bed, with the help of Jaemin, the two of them made their way into the master bedroom. Jeno was lying in bed already and Renjun gently detached himself from Jaemin's hold and leaped into bed. The smaller male snuggled into Jeno, feeling Jaemin slip in next to him.

"You know," Jeno started, sliding his phone under his pillow and turning sideways to try and hug both his husbands at the same time. "Yeonjun told me they were with a group of kids who also had two dads."

"Really? I haven't heard of anyone like that, well, other than..." Jaemin's voice trailed off towards the end.

But it was Renjun who said what they were all thinking. "Do you think they're the boys' kids?" He grimaced, feeling Jeno stiffen up.

“It can’t be. Didn’t–” Jaemin coughed, carding a hand through his hair, “–didn’t Mark and Donghyuck move to Canada or something? And I swear Chenle and Jisung can’t be having kids already.”

But Jeno simply let out a noise that was similar to a growl. "Don’t fucking care where any of them are, I just don't want anyone in this family having contact with anyone in either of their families." Jeno's voice held a steeliness to it that both Jaemin and Renjun had only heard once before.

But Renjun sighed, shaking his head. He softly ran his fingers through Jeno's hair, trying his best to placate his husband, leaning in to give the male gentle kisses. "We shouldn't do that, Jen. We know how hard it's been for the kids to make friends, because of _us_. We can't break a friendship up if they’re happy."

"Baby's right, Jeno." Jaemin agreed, leaning over Renjun's small body to press a kiss on Jeno's lips. "Let's not jump to conclusions either, it might not be them."

Jeno let out a sigh, closing his eyes. "Fine." he muttered, still a little stoic. He relaxed when Renjun rolled over him and pushed him into the middle, both his husbands showering him with an excessive number of kisses.

Smiling softly, he knew he really couldn't ask for anything more than this.

* * *

"I can't believe this, _I'm_ still a baby."

"Sungie, I love you but you're 25," Chenle heaved a sigh, turning on his side to face Jisung. "Can you please? I'm _so_ tried."

Jisung knew that he was done for as soon as Chenle pouted in a way that was eerily similar to the one their daughter showed to get out of trouble. He mumbled under his breath before leaning in to give Chenle a soft kiss and was about to roll of bed when suddenly the door was thrown open and a pair of feet pattered towards the bed.

"Baba, good morning! 'M hungry!" It was Jiwoo, clad in her baby pink onesie, cheeks flushed and eyes sparkling. The girl pried apart her parents and settled herself in between them. "Baba, baba, _baba!_ Get up!" She urged, too enthusiastic for this early in the morning.

Jisung smiled to himself. "See Lele, she's asking for you. You know I can't cook for shit." He gasped and clapped a hand over his mouth when the curse accidentally escaped his lips and shuddered under Chenle's glare.

"You know what, _fine._ " Chenle grunted, pushing himself up into a sitting position. Jiwoo had grabbed his phone and was now tapping, acting as if she was an adult working in an office. Her cute expressions made Chenle smile and he leaned in to press a quick kiss on his daughter's rosy cheek. "I can't believe I have to look after the kids _and you._ "

"I'm still a _baby._ " Jisung insisted, goofy smile on his face.

Chenle rolled his eyes and walked into the bathroom but he didn't necessarily fight the statement. Jisung smiled even wider then turned to Jiwoo. "Woo, is you brother up?"

Jiwoo looked up at Jisung with wide eyes and shook her head. "No appa, he's a lazy boy." Jiwoo scrunched her face up at the words, looking very disappointed in her brother.

Jisung laughed, it was eight am on a Saturday morning and even he didn't want to get up but he was used to Jiwoo getting up at ridiculous hours during weekends. "Ok baby, let's get you dressed, yeah?"

Jiwoo nodded excitedly, resting her head on her appa's chest as the two of them made their way into the bathroom. "I don't wanna shower now, can I do it at night time?" Jiwoo asked, pulling a face at the bathtub.

Jisung laughed, nodding in agreement. "Ok then, let's brush your teeth and change out of your jammies, yeah?" Jiwoo nodded excitedly, stepping up on her small step-stool to reach the height of sink and see herself in the mirror. As she brushed her teeth, Jisung went into her room – walls a ridiculous bright pink, toys scattered all over the floor including a shocking amount of headless and naked barbie dolls – and went to pick out some clothes and placed it neatly on her unmade bed.

When Jisung finally made his way down to the kitchen, he found a sleepy Jihoon sitting on the kitchen counter. Chenle was in the middle of scolding the young boy, hands on hips and brows furrowed. Noticing Jisung making his way towards them, he let out a large sigh, and Jisung cocked his head as he wondered what was up this time.

"Your _darling_ son stayed up much later past his bed time and playing games on his iPad. I told you he's not old enough for devices like that!" Chenle whined, shaking his head.

Jisung frowned, turning to look at Jihoon, trying to appear as stern as possible. It didn't help that he used to do the exact same thing when he was that age. "Is this true? I told you not to use your iPad when you're not allowed to, you can use it the entire day but night-time’s for sleeping."

Jihoon whined, leaning in to hug his appa. "I'm sorry," He pouted and Jisung had to will himself to look away. What was with his family and their irresistible pouting? "I won't do it again, I just really had to pass the level in my new game."

With a soft hum, Jisung picked Jihoon up and gently put him on the floor. "Keep your promise, you're going to be tired the entire day now. Now, go and get dressed. Your sister's going to be done soon."

And so, with a sleepy nod of his head, Jihoon stumbled up the stairs. Jisung sighed, tired even though he had just gotten up from bed, but couldn't help but smile when Chenle opened his arms wide to hug him.

"You're such a pushover for both of them," Chenle chastised him, gently.

Jisung chuckled, shaking his head, then leaned down to press a chaste kiss on Chenle's forehead. "You act as if you weren't spoilt rotten growing up."

And in response, Chenle pouted and Jisung knows he really can't handle his family and their cute pouts. He smiled gently, leaning down once more to capture Chenle's lips with his own but the kiss was unfortunately cut short, as quickly as it had started.

" _Ew_ , appa! Stop trying to eat baba."

* * *

"Minsoo, have you packed your bag for tomorrow?"

Donghyuck shouted out, exiting the kitchen as he dried his hands on his pants, leaving an unflattering dark patch behind. He quickly clambered up the stairs and entered his son's room and smiled gently when he saw the young boy intently placing his books in his bag and getting his uniform ready for the next day.

"Done, appa." Minsoo looked up with a bright smile, running over to his appa to give him a tight hug. "I have something for you!" he added, causing Donghyuck to raise an eyebrow.

"Oh?" Donghyuck asked, dropping down to his knees to somewhat match Minsoo's height. "What is it, Min?"

"I know you've been sad recently because of dad, but I'm here for you appa." Minsoo said, solemnly and with a bright smile before passing Donghyuck a card. It was a piece of red card paper, folded in half, with a large heart drawn in the front. In Minsoo's neat, small handwriting it had said ‘ _I love you appa’_ and opening it there was a short message on one page and a drawing of their small family on the next.

Donghyuck smiled. He hadn't meant for Minsoo to realise how down he was feeling lately but the boy was a lot like his father and just seemed to pick up on his moods but he appreciated the comfort. "Thank you so much baby, I love it." He mumbled, tears lining his eyes and threatening to fall, as he opened his arms wide for a hug.

Minsoo happily ran in and it was quiet then, just the two of them in his room hugging quietly. But, when Minsoo opened his eyes and looked up, he was met with a figure standing by the door and he pulled himself out of his appa's hug quickly, eyes and mouth open in shock.

"Dad?" Minsoo's voice wavered and Donghyuck spun around so fast he was certain he'd have whiplash.

Donghyuck's breathing hitched as he watched Mark walk towards them with a soft, teary smile on his face. "Mark," he whispered, letting go off Minsoo's hand and letting the young boy run towards his dad.

"Minsoo, I've missed you so much." Mark lifted the young boy up into his arms, even though the eight year was quickly outgrowing being lifted by his dad.

Minsoo nuzzled his nose into Mark's neck and smiled. "I missed you too, dad." He said, brightly. He then leaned in to Mark's ear and whispered, "Appa's been sad you were away for so long, you _have_ to make him happy again dad."

Mark frowned at this information, looking over to Donghyuck who had decided to nit-pick at Minsoo's bed. The slightly red eyes didn't go past Mark's attention and he let out a sigh, feeling a wave of guilt wash over him.

"I will, I promise," He assured his son. "Let's get you into bed, yeah? You have school tomorrow, so early morning!"

He tucked Minsoo into bed, Donghyuck singing him a song like he always did but this time accompanied by Mark and the young boy fell fast asleep quickly. As soon as the door closed behind him, Donghyuck was greeted with a pair of lips on his own. He scrunched his eyes shut tightly, his fingers gripping the sides of Mark’s blazer and melted into the kiss, enjoying how Mark cupped his cheeks and gently caressed his jawline with his finger.

The tears that had been steadily building up finally burst free and trailed down his cheeks and Mark pulled away as soon as he felt a wetness on his finger. Donghyuck rested his forehead on Mark's chest, rubbing at his face to hide the tears but his shaky, laboured breathing betrayed him.

Mark closed his eyes, taking a deep breath before holding Donghyuck up by his shoulders and looking him into his eyes. "Baby, please don't cry."

Donghyuck shook his head, hands coming up to wipe away his tears that just didn't seem to stop. "It's fine, I'm just being sensitive. I just missed you a lot."

"I missed you too Hyuckie, I missed you so much. I hate that I can't be at home with you and Minsoo as much as I want to."

Donghyuck could hear the guilt in Mark's voice and he quickly shook his head. "It's not your fault Markie. You work so hard for the two of us. I married you knowing very well you would need to go on trips for you job often and I was especially certain I could handle it when we adopted Minsoo. I just wasn't used to you leaving for so long after you were working home for a while."

And Mark really couldn't ask for anything else. Mark loved his job, no matter how stressful and frustrating it got at times, but he also loved his family and he felt blessed that Donghyuck never made him choose. "I'm sorry everything took more time than planned, I'll be at home for at least another three to four weeks, promise."

"Really?" Donghyuck asked, relaxing himself away from Mark and reaching down to hold his hand instead. When Mark hummed positively, Donghyuck couldn't help the bright smile that spread across his face before he turned around and led Mark downstairs. "I'm glad."

Mark followed, his eyes trained on their intertwined hands and he couldn't help but feel so happy. So, _so_ happy. He couldn’t ask for anything more. He shrugged off his blazer as Donghyuck walked into the kitchen to fill a plate of dinner for him. "How's work for you?"

"It’s fine." Donghyuck sighed, "I've been finishing later than usual lately, Minsoo normally waits in the library for me or sometimes I tell him to go home." Mark nodded understandingly as he draped his blazer over the chair and sat down, smiling at the homemade food.

"Is everyone treating you well, baby?" Mark asked, leaning in to stroke Donghyuck's hair. The male had worked hard the past few years. After completing his music degree, he had decided to get a masters in teaching and he had officially graduated last year. Now he was a music and Korean teacher at a school a few suburbs over.

Donghyuck giggled lightly. "Yes Mark, everyone's nice. There's this other music teacher there as well and she also teaches Chinese. She knows, like, so many languages _and_ she used to be an opera singer!"

Donghyuck bounced in his seat and Mark smiled fondly. He really couldn’t ask for anything more than this moment.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> bleugh rlly late chapter ........ im sorry :// i dont have an excuse lmao,,, but i'll try and get the next chapter out soon. also is the story line a little too slow? i kinda wanted to explain what the kids were like in the first chapter and thenwhat the dreamies were like in this one but idk if im dragging everything out or .......... but yes
> 
> anywayyyys thank you for reading !!! stay safe and healthy and hydrated !! <33 lots of love, cel !!!


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